1997 CHEVROLET CAMARO — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 69 complaints · 6 recalls
Most-reported system: ENGINE (11 complaints · 15.9%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 12
  • Fires 3
  • Injuries 9
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 1996 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution ENGINE appears in 11 of 69 owner complaints (15.9%) in this vehicle snapshot. ENGINE: 11 complaints, 15.9% of reports ENGINE 11 · 15.9% AIR BAGS: 7 complaints, 10.1% of reports AIR BAGS 7 · 10.1% · 5 crash reports 1 fire reports SERVICE BRAKES: 7 complaints, 10.1% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 7 · 10.1% · 1 crash reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 6 complaints, 8.7% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 6 · 8.7% · 1 crash reports POWER TRAIN: 6 complaints, 8.7% of reports POWER TRAIN 6 · 8.7% STEERING: 5 complaints, 7.3% of reports STEERING 5 · 7.3% · 2 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 4 complaints, 5.8% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 4 · 5.8% · 2 fire reports SUSPENSION: 4 complaints, 5.8% of reports SUSPENSION 4 · 5.8% VISIBILITY: 4 complaints, 5.8% of reports VISIBILITY 4 · 5.8% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 51 complaints, 73.9% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 51 · 73.9% · 10 crash reports 2 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
ENGINE 11 15.9% 0 crashes · 0 fires
AIR BAGS 7 10.1% 5 crashes · 1 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 7 10.1% 1 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 6 8.7% 1 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 6 8.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 5 7.3% 2 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 4 5.8% 0 crashes · 2 fires
SUSPENSION 4 5.8% 0 crashes · 0 fires
VISIBILITY 4 5.8% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 51 73.9% 10 crashes · 2 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Oct 1996; the first recall shown was reported in Nov 1996. 1996-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 1998-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 1998-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 1999-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 1999-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2000-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2000-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2000-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2000-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2001-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2001-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2001-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2002-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2003-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2003-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2003-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2004-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2004-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2005-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2015-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Oct 1996 Oct 2015 Recall campaign 96V219000 ◆ Recall campaign 96V219000 Recall campaign 06E026000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E026000 Recall campaign 06E065000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E065000 Recall campaign 07E088000 ◆ Recall campaign 07E088000 Recall campaign 09E012000 ◆ Recall campaign 09E012000 Recall campaign 09E025000 ◆ Recall campaign 09E025000 Investigation PE97036 ● Investigation PE97036 Investigation EA97024 ● Investigation EA97024
  • Campaign 09E025000 was reported 3,510 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1996-Q4 Owner reports 1
1997-Q1 Owner reports 1
1997-Q2 Owner reports 1
1997-Q3 Owner reports 1
1997-Q4 Owner reports 2
1998-Q1 Owner reports 1
1998-Q2 Owner reports 7
1998-Q3 Owner reports 1
1998-Q4 Owner reports 2
1999-Q1 Owner reports 5
1999-Q2 Owner reports 2
1999-Q3 Owner reports 7
1999-Q4 Owner reports 5
2000-Q1 Owner reports 3
2000-Q2 Owner reports 2
2000-Q3 Owner reports 1
2000-Q4 Owner reports 1
2001-Q1 Owner reports 2
2001-Q2 Owner reports 2
2001-Q3 Owner reports 1
2002-Q1 Owner reports 1
2002-Q2 Owner reports 4
2002-Q3 Owner reports 1
2002-Q4 Owner reports 1
2003-Q1 Owner reports 3
2003-Q2 Owner reports 2
2003-Q4 Owner reports 2
2004-Q2 Owner reports 1
2004-Q4 Owner reports 2
2005-Q2 Owner reports 1
2010-Q3 Owner reports 1
2013-Q2 Owner reports 1
2015-Q4 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 96V219000
Recall campaign 1 06E026000
Recall campaign 1 06E065000
Recall campaign 1 07E088000
Recall campaign 1 09E012000
Recall campaign 1 09E025000
Defect investigation 1 PE97036
Defect investigation 1 EA97024
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (6)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 06E026000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    WITHOUT THE AMBER REFLECTORS, THE VEHICLE WILL BE POORLY ILLUMINATED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.
    Remedy:
    PRO-A MOTORS WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER TO REPURCHASE THE LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 3, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT PRO-A MOTORS AT 323-838-2988.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 06E065000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    LACK OF AMBER SIDE REFLECTORS IN THE LAMPS WILL DECREASE LIGHTING VISIBILITY TO OTHER DRIVERS AND MAY POSSIBLY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    AJ MOTORSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 31, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT AJ MOTORSPORT AT 626-618-2026.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 07E088000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    THIS CONDITION MAY CAUSE INADEQUATE SEALING AND LOSS OF ENGINE OIL, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A FIRE.
    Remedy:
    HONEYWELL WILL REPLACE THE AFFECTED OIL FILTERS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN DURING NOVEMBER 2007. OWNERS CAN CONTACT FRAM CUSTOMER SERVICE TOLL-FREE AT 1-800-890-2075.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09E012000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    SABERSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 11, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SABERSPORT AT 1-909-598-7589.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  5. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09E025000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DOPE, INC. WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 28, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT DOPE, INC. AT 1-626-272-1798.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  6. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 96V219000

    Report date
    Component:
    SEAT BELTS
    Consequence:
    IN THE EVENT OF A VEHICLE COLLISION, UNBELTED OCCUPANTS ARE MORE AT RISK OF INJURY THAN THOSE USING SEAT BELTS.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE SEAT BELTS FOR PROPER FRONT SEAT BELT RETRACTOR POSITION. RETRACTORS FOUND TO BE IMPROPERLY POSITIONED WILL BE REINSTALLED CORRECTLY.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 69 complaints · page 1 of 3

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources